How to Get a Police Report for a Car Accident in La Mirada, CA

Were you in a car accident in La Mirada, California? After the crash, you may have been taken away in an ambulance to the emergency room at St. Jude or Whittier Hospital. Now that the dust has settled, you want to find out who the police placed at fault for the car accident. To do that, you need to obtain a copy of the Traffic Collision Report.

While you're recovering from your injuries, missing time from work, and dealing with everything else that happens after a car accident, trying to get a copy of the police report may be the last thing you want to do. Personal injury attorney Blaise Patzkowski grew up in La Mirada and can help. Contact him directly for assistance getting the report.

Those involved in the crash are also able to request a copy of the Traffic Collision Report. The city of La Mirada does not have its own police department. Instead, it contracts with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which investigates and writes reports about motor vehicle collisions in La Mirada, as well as Norwalk, South Unincorporated Whittier, and East Unincorporated Whittier.

Unfortunately, you cannot request a police report online. To obtain a Traffic Collision Report from the LA County Sheriff's Department, you must either go to the office in person or mail a request.

To Request In Person:

Go to: 12440 East Imperial Highway, Suite 120, Norwalk, CA 90650

The entrance is located near the visitor parking lot.

Telephone: (562) 345-4441

Hours: Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. Fridays are by appointment only, and can be scheduled by calling (562) 345-4441.

You will need a valid ID establishing a legal interest in the report. This can be either:

A valid state issued identification with your picture on it such as a Driver’s License or Identification Card; or
A valid government issued passport which has your picture on it.

Requesting by Mail:

Written requests, with required documents and fees, must be mailed to:

Records and Identification Bureau
Attention: Correspondence Unit
12440 East Imperial Highway, Suite 400 West
Norwalk, California 90650

The request should include:

- Your full name (including any alias you want searched)
- Your date of birth
- The address where the report should be mailed
- Your signature
- Your valid notarized identification

Including specific information about the incident will help the Sheriff's Department locate the report. So it is recommended that you include in your request any report numbers, the date of the incident, and the location of the incident.

The fee to request a report is $25 if you provide a file number or $35 if you do not include a file number. Checks should be made payable to the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department or LASD.

How long does it take to receive a report?

A Traffic Collision Report must be completed before you can receive a copy of it. It typically takes several weeks after a car accident, bike accident, or automobile versus pedestrian collision for the Traffic Collision Report to be completed, and sometimes longer if it involves driving under the influence (DUI), a fatality, or serious injury. However, you may be able to obtain the "face page" of the report before the full report is completed. The face page is the first page of the report, which identifies the vehicles and parties involved, their auto insurance carrier(s), and the date and location of the incident.

In person requests are responded to on a first-come, first-serve basis. Wait times are often 1 to 3 hours. The busiest times of day are 11:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Requests made by mail have a typical processing time of at least 10 to 15 business days from the time they are received by the Sheriff's Department.

La Mirada car accident lawyer Blaise Patzkowski has successfully recovered many millions of dollars for people injured in car accidents, bike accidents, motorcycle accidents, DUI accidents, pedestrian accidents, and other personal injury matters. He is a La Mirada native, and a graduate of La Mirada public schools (Gardenhill Elementary School, Hutchinson Middle School, and La Mirada High School). If you or your family member was hurt in a car accident, please contact Mr. Patzkowski.

Disclaimer: The information here is general information that should not be taken as legal advice. It cannot be guaranteed to be accurate, current or complete. No attorney-client relationship is established between you and our law firm by reading this article. This article should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a lawyer about the specific facts of your case.

Where on the road can I ride my bike?

You can't ride your bike on the sidewalk in certain cities in California. And in many cities, there are only certain sidewalks where you can ride.

So if you have to ride in the street, where on the street can you ride your bike?

The answer can be found deep inside the California Vehicle Code. I dug it up so you won't have to.

California Vehicle Code section 21202 states:

(a) Any person operating a bicycle upon a roadway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at that time shall ride as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway

So unless you're cycling as fast as the cars on the road (yes, it happens -- I once worked with a cyclist who was riding over 40 mph), you should ride your bike in the same direction that vehicles are traveling, and you should be as close as feasible to the right curb/edge of the road. And where there's a bike lane, you should use it.

However, there are five exceptions that allow you to ride your bike somewhere other than the far right side of the road. Those are:

When overtaking and passing another bicycle or vehicle proceeding in the same direction.
When preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.
When reasonably necessary to avoid conditions (including, but not limited to, fixed or moving objects, vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians, animals, surface hazards, or substandard width lanes) that make it unsafe to continue along the right-hand curb or edge.
When approaching a place where a right turn is authorized.
On a one-way road with two or more marked traffic lanes, you may ride as near the left-hand curb or edge of that roadway as practicable.

Following the law when cycling will not necessarily prevent a car accident, especially when there are so many drivers who are distracted by their cell phone or driving under the influence, but it makes an accident with a car less likely. The more you can do to protect yourself while biking, the better.

And a note about the photo, you can't wear headphones in both ears while riding a bike in California (California Vehicle Code section 27400). Good thing it looks like he stopped pedaling before the photo.

Attorney Blaise Patzkowski is a cyclist and advocate for the rights of injured bicyclists in Southern California. If you or your family member was hurt in a bicycle accident, please contact us to speak directly with Mr. Patzkowski.

Can I ride my bike on the sidewalk in Newport Beach, CA?

With 10 miles of beautiful Pacific Ocean coastline (not to mention the Newport Peninsula, Back Bay, and Balboa Island), Newport Beach is one of the most popular biking destinations in Orange County.

Unfortunately, Newport Beach is also one of the most dangerous cities in California to bike. According to the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), in 2018 Newport Beach was in the top 11% for the most bicyclist injuries/fatalities compared to other comparably sized cities in California.

As a cyclist, an important way to reduce your risk of being involved in a car accident is to ride in the safest part of the roadway possible. Often, it feels safest to ride on the sidewalk, but riding on the sidewalk isn't always legal. Each city in California has its own laws regarding whether riding a bicycle on the sidewalk is legal.

So, can you ride your bike on the sidewalk in Newport Beach, CA?

The answer is that you can ride your bike on some but not all sidewalks in Newport Beach.

Newport Municipal Code section 12.56.030 (Operating Bicycle on Sidewalk) states:

A. Prohibition. No person shall operate or ride a bicycle upon any sidewalk in the City.

However, there are a number of exceptions, namely for: "Sidewalks on which bicyclists are permitted pursuant to a resolution adopted by the City Council."

Here is a helpful map showing where bicycle riding on the sidewalk is allowed in Newport (the yellow lines):

As of 2014, there were 25.5 miles of sidewalk in Newport Beach where bicycle riding was allowed. Some streets where sidewalk bike riding is allowed are:

Pacific Coast Highway, between Jamboree Road and Dover Drive
North and South Bristol Street
MacArthur Boulevard
San Joaquin Hills Road
Newport Coast Drive
Bonita Canyon Road
Irvine Avenue near 15th Street

Note that in some cases you may only be allowed to ride on the sidewalk on one side of the street, or for only a portion of the street, so look for signs that say "OK for Bikes to be on Sidewalk" to be sure.

Can I ride my bike on the sidewalk in Costa Mesa, CA?

California allows each city to make its own rules about bicycle riding on the sidewalk, so riding on the sidewalk could be legal when you're on one side of the street and illegal after you've crossed the street and are in a different city. This makes it difficult to know where you can legally bike on the sidewalk.

Riding your bike only where it's legal can significantly reduce the risk of getting hit by a car (and getting a ticket), so it's important to know the law before clipping in.

This article looks at the city where I live and cycle most often:

Costa Mesa, California

Costa Mesa has a population of more than 100,000 people, is over 15 square miles in size, and has three freeways running through it (the 55 Freeway, the 405 Freeway, and the 73). Because of its concentration of jobs and proximity to the beach, bicycle riding is an increasingly popular way of getting around in Costa Mesa.

Costa Mesa Ordinance 4-26 sets out the "Rules of the Road" for bike riding in the city. Its goal is to keep bicyclists safe and reduce the risk of bike accidents and injuries. However, even a careful bike rider who pulls up the Municipal Code before hopping on their bike may have a challenging time figuring out whether or not they can legally ride their bike on the sidewalk in Costa Mesa because of how the ordinance is written.

As to riding a bicycle on the sidewalk in Costa Mesa, Ordinance 4-26 states:

(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 10-134 of the Costa Mesa Municipal Code, whenever a person is riding a bicycle upon a sidewalk, such person shall yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian, bicyclist or vehicle exiting or entering any driveway or alley.

So we have to start with Costa Mesa Municipal Code section 10-134. This Code section requires vehicles exiting an alley, driveway or building to stop prior to driving onto a sidewalk.

So...can I ride my bike on the sidewalk?

The short answer is yes. It would be nice if the law came out and said it a little more clearly, but you can legally ride your bike on the sidewalk in Costa Mesa.

Section (e) talks about what a person riding their bike on the sidewalk must do (yield to others entering and exiting driveways and alleys). So, the city governs how a person can ride their bike on the sidewalk and does not prohibit it. You can legally ride your bike on the sidewalk in Costa Mesa, so long as you yield to others at driveways and alleys. That's good news for people like me, who feel safer riding their bike on the sidewalk on some bigger streets in Costa Mesa with fast moving traffic, like Bristol Street, Harbor Boulevard, and Victoria Street.

Although riding your bike on the sidewalk is not prohibited in Costa Mesa, there are more than 43 miles of bike paths throughout the city, so using these paths may reduce the risk of a bike accident in locations where they exist.